{4.5/5} “We’re on the brink of an adventure, children. Don’t spoil it with too many questions.”

Mary Poppins Returns, released in 2018

Michael Banks is behind on his loan payments since his wife died, and the bank is going to foreclose if he doesn’t come up with entire loan amount. He and his sister Jane believe that their father had shares in the bank, but they can’t find the certificates. When Michael throws out their old kite and it blows away, Mary Poppins follows it down to Cherry Tree Lane.

People don’t make sequels to 54 year old movies every day, but you can see right away that they’ve taken a lot of care with this one. It was always wildly unlikely it would match the original, but it comes close.

The songs, particularly “Can you imagine that?” and “A Cover is not the Book,” are catchy. The look of the film is terrific — it looks like it’s the same world as the original.

Dick van Dyke has a cameo, and it’s glorious. Meryl Streep and Angela Lansbury also have nice cameos. David Warner is also in here — see if you can find him.

The young actors playing Michael’s children are absolutely delightful. Ben Whishaw and Emily Mortimer are perfect as Michael and Jane. And it seems like no one could play Mary Poppins today except for Emily Blunt.

Stars Lin-Manuel Miranda, Julie Walters, and Colin Firth. Directed by Rob Marshall (Into the Woods). The music by Marc Shaiman contains hints of the original score.